Go car free this Thursday for Car Free Day!

Richmond Council is encouraging residents to walk and cycle this Car Free Day.

Thursday 22 September is World Car Free Day which provides a chance to reimagine our streets around people.

As part of Car free Day Richmond Council is encouraging residents to leave their cars at home and walk or cycle if travelling in and around the borough. By taking more active travel options for short journeys we can all help to improve local air quality. For longer journeys or those that cannot be made easily on foot or by bike, many parts of the Borough are also well connected by public transport.

Supporting more active travel and improving air quality in Richmond upon Thames are amongst the Council’s key priorities.

To mark Car Free Day Richmond Council previously announced that it would be waiving all administration costs for road closures on Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 September to encourage Play Streets which offers residents the chance to close their roads to through-traffic and allow kids to play outside and have fun with their friends, family and neighbours.   

Check out our Play Street map to see if a Play Street is happening on your street. 

The best way to mark Car Free Day is to make sure your car, if you have one, stays firmly parked for the duration of the day. Residents can also mark the day by:

• Hiring one of the Lime Bikes that now operate in the borough for short journeys 
• Hiring a new bicycle, e-bike or cargo bike for a small monthly fee with the option to buy the bike with Try Before You Bike 
• Joining the new community cargo bike hire scheme and getting two hours free usage everyday of one of the three community cargo bikes in the borough 
• Hiring a new electric scooter with TIER Mobility. Use the code CARFREE22 for two free unlocks and 20 minutes free usage. Valid until 24 October 2022
• Using the CycleStreet UK journey planner to plan your cycle in and around the borough 
• Over 60? Make the most of the Older Person’s Freedom Pass giving you free travel on London underground, buses, docklands light railway and trams at all times as well as on some Overground and National Rail services.